Developmental Behavioral Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Pediatr Res. 2023 Dec;94(6):2098-2104. doi: 10.1038/s41390-023-02748-2. Epub 2023 Jul 27.
Maternal stress has negative consequences on infant behavioral development, and COVID-19 presented uniquely stressful situations to mothers of infants born during the pandemic. We hypothesized that mothers with higher levels of perceived stress during the pandemic would report higher levels of infant regulatory problems including crying and interrupted sleep patterns.
As part 6 sites of a longitudinal study, mothers of infants born during the pandemic completed the Perceived Stress Scale, the Brief Infant Sleep Questionnaire, and an Infant Crying survey at 6 (n = 433) and 12 (n = 344) months of infant age.
Maternal perceived stress, which remained consistent at 6 and 12 months of infant age, was significantly positively correlated with time taken to settle infants. Although maternal perceived stress was not correlated with uninterrupted sleep length, time taken to put the infant to sleep was correlated. Perceived stress was also correlated with the amount of infant crying and fussiness reported at 6 months.
Mothers who reported higher levels of perceived stress during the pandemic reported higher levels of regulatory problems, specifically at 6 months. Examining how varying levels of maternal stress and infant behaviors relate to overall infant developmental status over time is an important next step.
Women giving birth during the COVID-19 pandemic who reported higher levels of stress on the Perceived Stress Scale also reported higher levels of infant fussiness and crying at 6 months old, and more disruptive sleep patterns in their infants at 6 months and 12 months old. Sleeping problems and excessive crying in infancy are two regulatory problems that are known risk factors for emotional and behavioral issues in later childhood. This paper is one of the first studies highlighting the associations between maternal stress and infant behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
母体压力对婴儿行为发育有负面影响，而 COVID-19 给疫情期间婴儿的母亲带来了独特的压力。我们假设，在疫情期间感知压力较高的母亲会报告更高水平的婴儿调节问题，包括哭闹和睡眠模式中断。
作为一项纵向研究的 6 个地点之一，疫情期间出生的婴儿的母亲在 6 （n=433）和 12 个月（n=344）婴儿年龄时完成了感知压力量表、简短婴儿睡眠问卷和婴儿哭泣调查。
婴儿 6 个月和 12 个月时，母体感知压力保持一致，与安抚婴儿所需的时间呈显著正相关。虽然母体感知压力与不间断睡眠时间没有相关性，但入睡时间与感知压力相关。感知压力也与 6 个月时报告的婴儿哭泣和烦躁程度相关。
在疫情期间报告感知压力较高的母亲报告了更高水平的调节问题，特别是在 6 个月时。随着时间的推移，检查母体压力水平和婴儿行为与整体婴儿发育状况的关系是下一步的重要工作。
在 COVID-19 大流行期间分娩的报告感知压力量表评分较高的女性，其婴儿在 6 个月时的烦躁和哭闹程度也较高，6 个月和 12 个月时的婴儿睡眠模式中断程度也较高。婴儿期的睡眠问题和过度哭闹是两个调节问题，是儿童后期情绪和行为问题的已知风险因素。本文是首批强调 COVID-19 大流行期间母体压力与婴儿行为之间关联的研究之一。
